Stamkos, Hedman help Lightning outlast Flyers

Steven Stamkos and Victor Hedman were too much for the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday.

Stamkos and Hedman combined for four goals and five assists to lead the host Tampa Bay Lightning to a 7-6 shootout victory against the Flyers.

Stamkos scored twice and added three assists and Hedman had two goals and two assists.

Tampa Bay wing Nikita Kucherov, the league’s leading scorer, returned from a two-game absence and had three assists.

“When these guys are rolling, you just have to keep putting them out there,” Lightning coach Jon Cooper said. “You want them to keep going with that feeling they are having, and it paid off for us tonight.”

Stamkos added the shootout clincher as the league-leading Lightning improved to 6-0-1 in its past seven games. Andrei Vasilevskiy finished with 37 saves for his league-leading 38th victory.

Ivan Provorov had a goal and two assists for Philadelphia, which has lost two in a row for the first time since a four-game losing streak from Jan. 25 to Feb. 3.

Tampa Bay overcame two multigoal deficits.

Tampa Bay’s Victor Hedman (left) and Steven Stamkos combined for four goals and five assists.

Tampa Bay’s Victor Hedman (left) and Steven Stamkos combined for four goals and five assists.

Photo: Chris O'Meara, Associated Press

Photo: Chris O'Meara, Associated Press

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Tampa Bay’s Victor Hedman (left) and Steven Stamkos combined for four goals and five assists.

Tampa Bay’s Victor Hedman (left) and Steven Stamkos combined for four goals and five assists.

Photo: Chris O'Meara, Associated Press

Stamkos, Hedman help Lightning outlast Flyers

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“Any time you’re down a couple of goals in different parts of the game, especially in the third, and you come back and win, it’s emotional,” Stamkos said. “It shows guys care. Guys never gave up.”

Capitals 5, Maple Leafs 2: Alex Ovechkin moved closer to 600 career goals and Washington put on an offensive show against Toronto in an outdoor game at the U.S. Naval Academy in Bethesda, Md. Ovechkin scored his 40th goal of the season and 598th of his career. Evgeny Kuznetsov, Nicklas Backstrom, John Carlson and Jakub Vrana also scored for the Capitals, who hardly looked like a team that had recently lost four of six to shrink its large lead atop the Metropolitan Division. Washington got 27 saves from Braden Holtby as it improved to 3-0-0 in outdoor games. Ovechkin became the sixth player in NHL history with nine-plus 40-goal seasons.

Coyotes 2, Senators 1: Antti Raanta made 23 saves and Arizona rallied to beat visiting Ottawa. Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Jordan Martinook scored. Ottawa’s Jean-Gabriel Pageau scored his second goal in two nights, and Mike Condon made 25 saves. Ottawa has lost six of its past seven games.

Penguins 3, Islanders 2: Sidney Crosby finished off a 2-on-1 by burying a shot past Chris Gibson 3:48 into overtime in host Pittsburgh’s victory over New York. Derick Brassard’s first goal with Pittsburgh tied it. Crosby’s 22nd goal of the season helped Pittsburgh snap a three-game losing streak. Brandon Davidson scored his first goal with New York, and Anders Lee added his team-leading 31st.

Bruins 2, Canadiens 1: Brad Marchand scored 2:06 into overtime to lift host Boston over Montreal. Jake DeBrusk tied it for the Bruins with 2:45 left in regulation. Boston won its third straight and completed a four-game sweep of the season series with the Canadiens for the first time since 1994-95. Anton Khudobin made 27 saves for Boston, allowing only Brendan Gallagher’s goal.

Rangers 3, Oilers 2: Mika Zibanejad had a goal and an assist and Alexander Georgiev made 35 saves for his first NHL win as New York completed a three-game sweep of a trip through Western Canada

Stars 3, Blues 2: Jamie Benn scored 3:04 into overtime as host Dallas rallied to beat St. Louis. Benn’s winner from the high slot came after Alexander Radulov pulled Dallas even with 2:56 remaining in regulation. St. Louis lost for the eighth time in nine games, and the Stars strengthened their hold on the top wild-card spot in the tight Western Conference playoff race.

Blackhawks 5, Kings 3: Jonathan Toews broke a tie on a power play with 1:58 left and Chicago snapped a seven-game road losing streak. Chicago tied it with 5:36 to go. Toews beat goalie Jonathan Quick for his 17th of the season. Patrick Kane added an empty-net goal for Chicago, Jordan Oesterle and Artem Anisimov also scored.